Warriors trade rumors show they still don’t know who they are

The Warriors’ hunt for another star is their last chance to win with Stephen Curry

The Golden State Warriors have gone from the toast of the town and celebrations that they were back to contention to questions about whether trades are needed.

How did it get here so fast?

Tuesday’s loss to the Nuggets provides some secret insights. The Warriors were without Draymond Green and lost thanks to a wild Denver comeback. On the surface, that’s a quality loss to a good team at home while missing your second-best player.

But after the Nuggets game, when he was through blasting the officials for missing Christian Braun’s pretty obvious call for a timeout when he didn’t have one, Kerr was pointed in his criticism for Brandin Podziemski.

“I love Brandin,” Kerr said after lighting up the sophomore post-game for bad decision-making and costly turnovers. “Hell of a player. Hell of a future ahead of him. But I hope he watches this clip because he needs to hear it. He’s gotta be a smart, tough, great decision-maker. He’s very capable of it. That’s his next step.”

That alone doesn’t shake walls. That’s just coaching.

But what’s gone under the radar for a team that’s 11-3 is exactly how much Kerr already has to alter the team in search of something he can rely on.

First, Jonathan Kuminga was moved to the bench. Then it was accepting that Lindy Waters III probably isn’t the new Splash Brother despite his hot shooting start.

He moved Podziemski into the starter role, but a tenuous one when Curry and Green are both back.

Kerr was lauded when the Warriors were winning with a 12-man rotation. But when the team started losing, Curry himself told reporters that the rotation needs to be more predictable.

Then in the Nuggets game, Curry’s rotation changed again, with Curry citing a need to switch things up to find a rhythm.

So which is it? More predictability or a need to switch things up?

The answer is that both things are related to the same thing: the Warriors don’t know who they are.

They look like they know. There’s still the same ball movement, the same Curry splashing, the same great Draymond defense. Golden State is crushing opponents when Curry and Green are on the floor together, winning by 12.2 points per 100 possessions together.

But there’s a reason the Warriors explored trades for both Paul George and Lauri Markkanen this summer.

“You don’t look at that kind of major trade if you’re good with the rotation,” one league executive noted this week. “They knew they needed upgrades.”

ESPN insider Shams Charania confirmed the Warriors are still on the hunt for second star next to Curry on Friday:

Thursday’s win over the Rockets without Green and Curry provides a look at how good the “bones” of the team are. Defensively, the Warriors are a monster, and they held the Rockets to 21-of-77 shooting outside of restricted area.

If there is an identity for Golden State, it’s elite defense plus Curry. With Curry 36 and Green 34, can they hold up over the course of the season? There were signs of slippage in the dominance of that pairing late last season.

It’s impossible not to feel that the Warriors’ pursuit of a third star is also an attempt to find a third-way forward. The “two timelines” approach failed, even Jonathan Kuminga improving year over year and Podziemski’s stellar rookie season.

Kuminga in particular is a tough fit. He’s clearly looking to be a star player even as he’s done the right thing and accepted a bench role this season. So much of his game is north-south, Gary Payton II talked about how important it is for him to attack the basket. But the Warriors are not a simple north-south team, not under Kerr and not with Curry. They are a motion offense.

Kuminga’s drives often stick out like a sore thumb, despite their success. The team has slashers like Kuminga and Podziemski, and fewer high-IQ ball-movers, even compared to the 2022 title team.

All of this creates the simplest question that front office executives around the league continue to ask.

“I don’t think there’s this magical way for them to branch to the next era, unless Giannis (Antetokounmpo) actually demands a trade specifically there,” one Western Conference executive said. “So they may have to decide if they want to try and help Steph with one more short-term deal or accept just being in the mix and hope for the best.”